Is Omnisphere Worth It? (Audio Plugin)

Sure, Omnisphere is a very well-known and popular synthesizer.

Is it really worth it though?

This quick tip will explain what Omnisphere is and why it's worth it, including some strengths and weaknesses.

What is Omnisphere?

Spectrasonics Omnisphere 2 is a multi-timbral Power Synthesizer that can have up to 20 oscillators per patch.

It is not a Rompler or a Sampler as some may think.

Here are some of the specs:

• Over 14 thousand sounds
• You can use your own audio file as a sound source
• Over 500 DSP Waveforms
• Powerful Granular Synthesis
• 8 LFOs per patch
• Much more...

There are way too many specs of this synth to list them all here, check out the full list of features of Omnisphere on the Spectrasonics website.

Minimum Requirements

To use this synthesizer plugin, your computer needs to meet these minimum requirements:

• 2.4 GHz or higher processor
• 8GB of RAM or more recommended
• Mac: OS X 10.11 El Capitan or higher
• Windows: Microsoft Windows 7 or higher

Omnisphere is available as 64-bit VST, AU, and AAX plugins. You can either get the boxed edition or download it.

How Much Space do you Need for Omnisphere?

Omnisphere's download size is quite big. The minimum hard drive space you need is 64GB but how else are you going to store over 14 000 sounds, over 500 DSP waveforms, and 58 FX units?

Is Omnisphere free?

No, Omnisphere is not free. It costs $499 USD so it isn't cheap either.

Unfortunately, there is no rent-to-own option from Splice or any other payment plan for Omnisphere either.

What Makes Omnisphere Worth the Money?

Omnisphere is definitely well worth the money and a beast when it comes to VST Synths that have tremendous capabilities to create unique sounds. It gives you a huge amount of neat presets that are good for any kind of modern music right now.

However, being one of the pricey, bigger synth plugins, artists and producers are often in the dilemma; is it worth the value of $500?

There is no doubt this plugin made by Spectrasonics is an all-round, versatile Synth plugin. However, is it a must-have addition to your software gear?

The short answer would be no. It is great if you want more elements and sounds in your repertoire, but you don't necessarily need it. You will probably be fine either way if you have a big library of sounds already.

That being said, like every other plugin, it is particularly good for some type of work, and less suitable for other styles of producing, so if you decide to go for Omnisphere, here are some advantages and disadvantages.

Strengths

Omni's live instrument collection is unmatched. It has an unbelievable variety of guitars. It also has a considerable amount of neat choir sounds, vox effects, and more.

This plugin also has some incredible sounding pads and customization. The design possibilities for them allow for all kinds of warm, or airy effects.

Weaknesses

It is not the easiest Synth to use, in terms of applying the sound in your head, into the session. Having such a vast variety of presets and sounds, it's easy to get lost scrolling for an element or a sound in Omni.

There is also an issue where a lot of Omnisphere's sounds are distorted and clipped purposely, so you have to spend some time tweaking them, to get the sound you want.

To sum up, Omnisphere is a quality Synth VST that is one of the most used plugins by artists globally, but if you are a beginner producer looking to get value for your budget, there are probably other cheaper VST synths who could get the job done. Invest in buying Omnisphere if you are serious about pursuing a career with music production.